Paid FP options coming soon to WDW?

[snappy]

Whatever “benefits” accrue to onsite guests, DVC members, AP holders, they will be fluid and could evaporate.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

This thread is so hard to keep up on, lol!
Between this one and checking up on the one over there, I am getting dizzy!

All you have to do is scroll down the other site’s thread looking ONLY for Martin’s posts, or this thread looking ONLY for Ryan’s posts. Truly.

 

[evlaina]

And until actual details of their plan is released, it is all conjecture. Ill wait until they actually give us details on their plan and go from there.

So many things we dont know until the plan details roll out.

Exactly. It's exciting (or nerve-wracking, depending on your feelings) to speculate, but there is no reason to be up in arms, or super happy, until we actually know the details....that being said, I hope we know soon!

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

If there's a recession:
30% off hotel+free fp package

There's also free dining, discount tickets with a package, bounceback offers. All without lowering MSRP for when downturn ends.

 

[SaintsManiac]

Yes, I do. I need the prebooked fastpasses done by noon, and there's no guarantee there are even fastpasses available in the morning at the right times so that I can get rid of them and get more! They have strings attached -- they have to be at least an hour apart -- and I why do I want to deal with that? Once you get rid of the old fastpasses, you can get more immediately! For example, last fall I was at MK. Once past noon, I got rid of my old fastpasses at 12 p.m. I got another fastpass for the Mermaid ride for within 10 minutes. So we ran to the Mermaid ride, got on, and I immediately got another ride at Haunted Mansion within 10 minutes! So we got out of the Mermaid ride and got on there, and I got another fastpass for Small world within 10 minutes! So we got there scanned in, and I got the Pirate ride for within 40 minutes! So we got out of the Small World ride, went to the quick service place right outside Pirates ride and ate lunch and a took a breather. Then we got on Pirate! Then we left MK. So basically, I got 3 fastpasses per hour!

(I admit, I spend most of my time on rides staring at my phone booking the fastpass for next ride.)

You do not need to pre-book 3 FPs if you are park hopping. You may want to check out the FP FAQ Addendum in the TPAS forum.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/f...al-tier-1-booking-anytime-fps-cl-fps.3538258/

 

[Sarah1024]

Yes, I do. I need the prebooked fastpasses done by noon, and there's no guarantee there are even fastpasses available in the morning at the right times so that I can get rid of them and get more! They have strings attached -- they have to be at least an hour apart -- and I why do I want to deal with that? Once you get rid of the old fastpasses, you can get more immediately! For example, last fall I was at MK. Once past noon, I got rid of my old fastpasses at 12 p.m. I got another fastpass for the Mermaid ride for within 10 minutes. So we ran to the Mermaid ride, got on, and I immediately got another ride at Haunted Mansion within 10 minutes! So we got out of the Mermaid ride and got on there, and I got another fastpass for Small world within 10 minutes! So we got there scanned in, and I got the Pirate ride for within 40 minutes! So we got out of the Small World ride, went to the quick service place right outside Pirates ride and ate lunch and a took a breather. Then we got on Pirate! Then we left MK. So basically, I got 3 fastpasses per hour!

(I admit, I spend most of my time on rides staring at my phone booking the fastpass for next ride.)

No you don't. You are missing the point. Say you want to ride SDD at DHS and then hop to MK and try to get POC. You only need to book ONE FP at DHS, SDD. Then as SOON as you scan your ONE pre-booked FP at DHS, you can start refreshing and get a FP at any other park.

 

[rteetz]

If there's a recession:
30% off hotel+free fp package

There's also free dining, discount tickets with a package, bounceback offers. All without lowering MSRP for when downturn ends.

Yes but with that recession I would think we would also see a decrease (in frequency) in price increases. So instead of sometimes 2 ticket price increases in a year we may see 1 or none. Or food and beverage prices won’t increase and stuff like that.

 

[TISHLOVESDISNEY]

All you have to do is scroll down the other site’s thread looking ONLY for Martin’s posts, or this thread looking ONLY for Ryan’s posts. Truly.

That is pretty much all I do. I just want the real info

 

[Sarah1024]

Whatever “benefits” accrue to onsite guests, DVC members, AP holders, they will be fluid and could evaporate.

They better not take too many benefits away from on site guests. THAT is a dangerous game to play!

 

[Nlgwisconsin]

I asked on the WDW Magic thread if there would be paid FP's for SWGE as a test and Martin responded "Testing is already happening. I can't say any more." To me, that seems like you will be able to pay for access from the beginning????

I would say this is likely in terms of the WDW Club Level that already allows guests to buy FP. Club Level is only available at the Deluxe Resorts at Walt Disney World.
All guests visiting Walt Disney World have access to 3 FastPass+ reservations per day. However, guests staying Club Level have the option to purchase 3 additional FastPasses per day.

• Cost is $50/day per person
• 3 day minimum purchase (so you're looking at a minimum of $150/person)
• These FastPasses can be booked up to 90 days out (vs. the 60 days window "regular" FastPasses have for onsite guests)
• No FastPass+ tier restrictions in booking; however, you can't repeat the same attraction more than once using FastPass+
• If you have a Park Hopper ticket, you can book these FastPasses in multiple parks on the same day

In essence, WDW already has a paid FP system with the above model. They are likely gauging how many people have purchased it, what impact it has to avail. FP / ride waits, etc. They are probably "testing" this model in offering something similar to SWGE and potentially more attractions with an expanded audience.

To me though, it's out of budget. It's 1) At a Deluxe resort and 2) For a family of 4, 3-day min., that's an additional $600.

 

[Carrie Ellis]

For us, the tickets for a week at WDW will run $2500. That is military pricing too. We would like to do MVMCP and that will be over $700. We are now considering one of the EMHs if they offer it at Hollywood Studios during Star Wars so that is another possible $700. If they charge for FPs; they have to stop raising ticket prices! It is KILLING families going.

If you have 1-3 people it might not be as much of a shocker but anything above it is nuts. I don't know how it can be a family tradition to go every 1-3 years anymore. There is no where affordable to stay for larger families with kids that need more bathrooms and beds. We officially stayed offsite in 2015. First time ever.

I guess it is all about supply and demand but it can't be families all the time anymore. I wouldn't mind looking into DVC but what if you are locked in and everything beyond DVC becomes insanely expensive in the next several years? We used to have a RV and camped at Fort Wilderness. I still think I would invest in an RV again over DVC. At least there are options with an RV and cost.

We like inviting a friend or two of the kids to go that has not been before. I require they buy their ticket but we provide the house, getting there and most meals. The FP thing will be hard to tell them to pay for too.

 

[Sarah1024]

I would say this is likely in terms of the WDW Club Level that already allows guests to buy FP. Club Level is only available at the Deluxe Resorts at Walt Disney World.
All guests visiting Walt Disney World have access to 3 FastPass+ reservations per day. However, guests staying Club Level have the option to purchase 3 additional FastPasses per day.

• Cost is $50/day per person
• 3 day minimum purchase (so you're looking at a minimum of $150/person)
• These FastPasses can be booked up to 90 days out (vs. the 60 days window "regular" FastPasses have for onsite guests)
• No FastPass+ tier restrictions in booking; however, you can't repeat the same attraction more than once using FastPass+
• If you have a Park Hopper ticket, you can book these FastPasses in multiple parks on the same day

In essence, WDW already has a paid FP system with the above model. They are likely gauging how many people have purchased it, what impact it has to avail. FP / ride waits, etc. They are probably "testing" this model in offering something similar to SWGE and potentially more attractions with an expanded audience.

To me though, it's out of budget. It's 1) At a Deluxe resort and 2) For a family of 4, 3-day min., that's an additional $600.

I think that they're talking about something different, but I could be wrong. It's all speculation! I also think if they rolled that out to the general public, TOO MANY people would take advantage of it.

 

[jhoannam]

Martin posted again this afternoon. He was indicating that there would be software tracking everything and constantly making changes.

Has he posted an estimated time of implementation?

 

[tlmadden73]

Are you saying this is what you want to see if they are making changes anyway, or that this is what you want to see no matter what?

Eliminating EMH is what you actually want to happen? Like, drop the perk altogether so you can pay for it instead?

And kill your three "free" fastpasses so you can now be charged additional money for the third one (albeit anytime vs. scheduled)?

I'm not getting how you feel this is better.

I "feel" that EMH is going to go away. For my next trip .. there are just are MORE EMM/DAH events as there are EMH. Why would Disney continue to offer this as a perk if the hotels are filling up AND people are willing to pay for these much more limited events (less staff needed to man 3 rides in TSL than a whole park's worth during EMH).

At the prices they charge Disney probably needs some perks for staying onsite .. most of their decisions seem to be driving guests away (charging for parking, reduced EMH, allowing non-Disney hotels access to 60-day FPs)

I don't WANT it to go away .. but if it does .. I would prefer (and I think most others would too) to have it replaced with a FP+ perk that you can use EVERY day of your trip (just like you can use the transportation every day).

As it stands right now, EMH is ONLY good if:
1) You want to get up early or stay late (a lot of families can't/don't)
2) Plan your park days around the EMH days (often impossible as you plan your park days around your ADRs)

Sure . EMH is good on long, flexible park-hopping trips where you might just go to a park because it has EMH .. but for short trips where you are doing maybe 1 park a day OFTEN the EMH just doesn't line up with your plan. (My trip coming up in two weeks for example).

 

[derekleigh]

Really??? You know...I fully support paying for PF after the free 3 ones. But cutting FP down to possibly 1 free one and paying for PF after already paying for the park ticket and overpriced parking? (FOR ME) WDW is slowly becoming out of my interest at the rate prices are going up. As a business major and person, I understand the business dynamic and looking at the bottom, and Disney has a BIG bottomline. But since we started going in 2008, it seems like the company is trying to nickel and dime everything.

 

[rteetz]

Has he posted an estimated time of implementation?

No

 

[tlmadden73]

I'm curious.

People pay $50-75 extra (per person) simply to park hop. Park hopping takes time, but can save you time if you are hopping to a less busy park.
People pay $69+ for EMM which is essentially 3 fast passes (though you can ride things multiple times) and breakfast.

How much would people be willing to pay for:
(I've put them in an order I think would probably "cost" more)

1) The ability to make your normal 3 FP reservations sooner than 60 days?
2) Simply the ability to make three fast passes, as normal, but ignore Tiering?
3) A 4th scheduled Fast Pass? (on top of the normal 3)
4) A single "anytime/anywhere" flexible Fast Pass per day for the length of your trip
5) Three "anytime/anywhere" fast passes per day for the length of your trip?

I think all these things people (like us here) would love to have the option for .. if so .. how much would we be willing to pay?

I'm not a fan of nickel/diming .. but that is just our business economy today. Whether it is for airlines, (charging for more leg room, charging for bagged) or games (a game is "free" to play .. but has tons of microtransactions) .. to this.

 

[Sarah1024]

I'm curious.

People pay $50-75 extra (per person) simply to park hop. Park hopping takes time, but can save you time if you are hopping to a less busy park.
People pay $69+ for EMM which is essentially 3 fast passes (though you can ride things multiple times) and breakfast.

How much would people be willing to pay for:
(I've put them in an order I think would probably "cost" more)

1) The ability to make your normal 3 FP reservations sooner than 60 days?
2) Simply the ability to make three fast passes, as normal, but ignore Tiering?
3) A 4th scheduled Fast Pass? (on top of the normal 3)
4) A single "anytime/anywhere" flexible Fast Pass per day for the length of your trip
5) Three "anytime/anywhere" fast passes per day for the length of your trip?

I think all these things people (like us here) would love to have the option for .. if so .. how much would we be willing to pay?

I'm not a fan of nickel/diming .. but that is just our business economy today. Whether it is for airlines, (charging for more leg room, charging for bagged) or games (a game is "free" to play .. but has tons of microtransactions) .. to this.

I mean what you have described is basically the CL FP package, apart from the anytime FP (which I don't think they'll offer due to scheduling)

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I'm curious.

People pay $50-75 extra (per person) simply to park hop. Park hopping takes time, but can save you time if you are hopping to a less busy park.
People pay $69+ for EMM which is essentially 3 fast passes (though you can ride things multiple times) and breakfast.

How much would people be willing to pay for:
(I've put them in an order I think would probably "cost" more)

1) The ability to make your normal 3 FP reservations sooner than 60 days?
2) Simply the ability to make three fast passes, as normal, but ignore Tiering?
3) A 4th scheduled Fast Pass? (on top of the normal 3)
4) A single "anytime/anywhere" flexible Fast Pass per day for the length of your trip
5) Three "anytime/anywhere" fast passes per day for the length of your trip?

I think all these things people (like us here) would love to have the option for .. if so .. how much would we be willing to pay?

I'm not a fan of nickel/diming .. but that is just our business economy today. Whether it is for airlines, (charging for more leg room, charging for bagged) or games (a game is "free" to play .. but has tons of microtransactions) .. to this.

I think what I would pay the most for is the guarantee of getting a FP for the most in demand attractions without having to stress to get them at 60+ days or know I can’t (realistically) get them at 30 days

Flexibility added to that would be great but knowing that at 5 days out or whatever I could locking FoP, Mine Train, Slinky Dog, and eventually Star Wars, Tron, etc would be worth the most to me

Can get at least some of those through tours or EMM but a) would take multiple of them and b) those include more than just the ride

 

[scrappinginontario]

I like it. Not at first, I didn't want to lose my 3 free fastpasses! But when I think about it more, it's actually a better system for everyone. I miss the old ticket fastpass system where you get one at a time once you get to the park. Things were awesome back then; you don't have to plan a zillion days ahead and when the day comes, there is no fastpass left for when you want to change your mind.

As long as everybody gets just one or 2 fastpass (and I assume that after it's used, you get another one and then another one, etc, subject to availablility), you get a lot more fastpasses available and all the fastpasses isn't taken just to be wasted.

For me, for example, I have a lot of what I call "junk fastpasses." I have them assigned for rides that I have no intention of going at the time just to get rid of them. Because currently you can only assign one fastpass per hour at the most, and all 3 fastpasses must be used up before you can use a new one dynamically at a different park, and I often don't do stuff that require fastpasses, and I do park hop a lot. I would say that about 40 percent of my preordered fastpasses are purposefully wasted. Generally, I use about 80 percent of my magic kingdom preordered fastpasses, 30% of my Epcot preordered fastpasses, and 30% of my Animal Kingdom preordered fastpasses. (I don't go to DHS in the morning.) The rest of the time, I go on rides that require little or no fastpass depending on my location in the park at the time. For example, if I happen to walk by the Figment ride and the line is short, I go on it rather than waiting for a fastpass to kick in at some future point and then walk all the way back from some other corner in Epcot.

I know that my junk fastpasses are clogging up the system, but there's nothing I can do about it because I have to get rid of them. Otherwise I hop to a new park and can't get fastpasses! Mostly I get junk fastpasses with rides that I know will need no fastpass at the time, but I don't know that for sure and at times, I've seen long lines of rides that I have junk fastpast to. If Disney allows only one fastpass each, that will get rid of such fastpass waste. And if everybody is on the same playing field, then there will be a lot more fastpass slots open.

And if everybody can get only one fastpass, you can get a lot more fastpasses per hour than the limit now of one per hour for the first 3 fastpasses.

Like last September, I was at MK, when Splash Mountain had a 20 minute wait. In the old days, if that were true, you would be able to get a paper fastpass in about 40 minutes. That day, no fastpass was available all day.

Also, in the old days, I would go to the Buzz Lightyear ride at dinner time, look at the wait time (say 20 minutes), get our paper fastpasses for 40 minutes later, and sit down and eat hot dogs at the lunching pad. when we are done (it takes that long to wait in line for the food and then eat it), the fastpass is ready, and we go on it! That's no longer an option nowadays. (And the hotdogs are no longer worth eating, so it works out.)

What about the paid option? I think most people are not going to pay for it. I'm going to avoid paying, for sure, because I can make it work even for SWGE rides. If just a few people pay for extra fastpasses, that's no different from a slight increase in attendance. It does help, however, if I have a specific, one time need of a paid fastpass due to circumstances, now I can get it whereas in the past, it's not possible. Also, if a person needs a night fastpass (like for the fireworks), he doesn't have to go without dynamic fastpass all day to get it. He has the option of buying one only for the day that he needs it.

So while going down from 3 to 1 fastpass doesn't sound good to me at first, I believe it will lighten the system for everybody and make things better all around.

I am going in September and I hope the new system will kick in by then!

If I'm reading things correctly (and there are a lot of guesses out there) this (getting additional FPs after using 'free' 1 or 2) may no longer be an option without paying.

At least that's what I think I've read. So confused!